Unit 23 Graphics: The evaluation of my ability to use Photoshop to create & edit computer graphics

This blog post will go into detail on my ability to use Photoshop to create and edit computer graphics for a given purpose such as splash art.

First, to edit/create any graphics  you are going to need the correct tools. The correct tools for the job range from selection tools, paint brush tools, resizing tools, cropping tools and sharpening/blur/gradient tools etc. And from my experience and time with working with Photoshop every single one of these tools is integrated into the software. These tools allow you to change the graphics colours, transport them onto different images, resize them and edit a lot of things out etc., which is essential.

The graphics software should also be able handle the right file types for keeping layers intact, allowing exportation to .jpg, .png etc. and should also handle vector and bitmap graphics. Photoshop allows you to save as a .psd file which can be quite large in size but keeps every single layer and its content in tact, the .psd can also be flattened into one layer so that it can literally be compressed and become a smaller file size. Photoshop can also let you import images as .bmp (bitmaps) and

The newest things I managed to learn in Photoshop were being able to click the paintbrush and set it up to the correct settings e.g. the flow, opacity, brush size etc. to make my graphic outline look not too big but not too small either. I also learnt how to use the clone

The things that went well with using Photoshop are that all the tools work seamlessly without error and easily allow you to work as-well as the fact that I was able to set up my brush very well to what was required for the work and that I could export/save the file so all the layers could be intact and would open to how they were last time I used them. The interface was rather simple and things were relatively easy to find comparing with GIMP where I find it harder to view the layers and the overall interface was split into separate windows which I found confusing.

To improve my use of Photoshop in the future I would like to suggest a "side by side" feature to view graphics in the same document but alongside one another for comparison or for editing both to see different effects, I think it could be a lot easier than the drop and drag via the small image windows in the file.

Unit 23 Graphics: The Aesthetics, Semiotics and Archetypes of my graphics design.

The Aesthetics:

Aesthetics are the studies of beauty within objects and the things that you find beautiful.
What I find beautiful about my graphical design of a super villain is that it is riddled with simplicity as-well as the image of a darker, evil villain who looks as if he really means do wreck havoc and destruction, his facial expression and pose all give you an idea of the anger and hatred he is harboring with-in for humanity. The hooded cape is a very nice touch which I really like because it just makes him look that much darker.

Semiotics:

Semiotics is essentially the study of signs and symbols that have
The lighting symbol that my villain carries is a very simple lighting bolt which comes from the idea of the Marvel Avengers heroes of a very simple design but yet says a lot about what the person can do, giving an idea of what their powers might be associated with or maybe who or what they are fighting for. For example, the Captain America symbol which is a shield coloured with the American flag is a very basic design yet tells you so much about Captain America, for one its actually giving you an idea on who he is fighting for. Since lighting bolts are usually associated with death, fear etc. It really does help portray the villain trying to spark those emotions/thoughts into the people he is trying to harm/destroy.

Archetypes:
Archetypes relate to characters, for example, from comic books and movies where they have very recognizable traits such as the 'Trickster' or 'Hero' A good example of this would be Loki as a trickster and Thor as a hero from the Thor series. The ideas for my villain stem from archetypal characters such as Doctor Doom, Thor, Electro and Darth Vader.

Comic book super heroes and villains have not been random, they have been redone from mostly things over the course of human history such as the Vikings, where they had Thor. Thor has now been re-created as god of thunder in the modern day with super strength powers and the ability to channel lightning and call upon storms etc. I definitely had Thor in mind when drumming up what super power my villain would carry. This stems on archetypal cliche characters seen today in movies and comic books on where the idea for my character stemmed from, an example of this would be Doctor Doom. While carrying no insignia as it is quite unusual for villains to carry emblems he has the same type of look as my villain. The powerful stances, the cape, the angry facial expressions etc.

Even the Lego version of Dr. Doom follows the same principles as the normal characters. The Lego Dr. Doom has had all of the ideas from the normal Dr. Doom channeled into him to produce him in Lego form. The cape is the same, the stances are the same, the face mask shows and he is using the same costume.

As you can see, Darth Vader from Star Wars is another example of an archetype that I have drawn character ideas from. He has the cape, as-well as the the menacing, powerful stance he is showing. My character uses the same stance to show that he is asserting his dominance over the city backdrop and looks to be a very powerful and in control villain. The low angles from which you can see these characters also show this.









Another, more recent archetype that I used was from the new Amazing Spider-Man 2 movie with the super villain named Electro. Electro uses the same hooded cloak look that I used for my villain and also harnesses electrical powers, much the same as my villain. This is conclusive proof that we are always going to be influenced by other character designs, you will never find a character design that has even a little part of it based off of another character or something belonging to an ancient tradition or time in human history.



Finally, I took a look at the actual characteristics of lightning to determine what effects it would have when used against the general populous of human enemies or heroes. One major one that I found out while researching is that wind currents, humidity etc. all have different effects such as strengthening the lightning bursts or affecting how it is distributed. I merged these into my own characters ability, meaning that he can change the severity of the lightning he is creating to maximize its power to take out larger or more resistance foes. The distribution factor means that he is able to control who is struck and where across vast areas, to target as many people as possible.

The fact that my character can also shoot lightning from his fingers was inspired by the force lightning effect in Star Wars, especially in Episode 6: Return of the Jedi where Emperor Palpatine shoots lightning from his finger tips (force lightning) to inflict pain onto Luke Sky-walker.

My Inspirations:  I am quite a big fan of the Marvel universe, cinematic and the comic book side and always look forward to the new films such as, coming in 2015, The Avengers, Age of Ultron and recently, Captain America 2 as well as the latest X-Men film. All of these inspirations create an amalgamation of archetypes that I sourced into my design for inspiration on where to take it and what to include. The fact that I am a fan of these different movies and comics gave me much inspiration to fall back on when thinking up ideas for my character.

Edit: Here is my final iteration of my character to support what I have stated about the archetypes and inspirations surrounding my design.